May 24, 2011
Dear Assistance Agreement Recipient:
This is to inform you that the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is in the process of transitioning to a new financial management system.
The transition process will include a three-week period in which EPA’s financial system will be unavailable for automated financial data processing. During this downtime period, EPA will not be able to electronically process faxed or mailed payment requests from recipients of EPA financial assistance agreements. The downtime for electronic payments will begin on September 28, 2011 and will continue through October 20, 2011.
To avoid any potential payment delays associated with EPA’s three-week financial system downtime, EPA strongly encourages recipients to enroll in the Department of Treasury’s Automated Standard Application for Payments (ASAP) system. Enrollment in ASAP will enable recipients to initiate an electronic payment request directly through the system. The request would be approved or rejected based on the amount of available funds in the recipient’s account for the assistance agreement. Approved funds would then be credited to the recipient at the financial institution identified on the recipient’s ASAP enrollment application.
ASAP is the preferred method of payment for EPA recipients and is available at no cost or charge to recipients.
To begin requesting and receiving funds electronically through ASAP, please complete the ASAP Initiate Enrollment form available at http://www.epa.gov/ocfo/finservices/forms.htm and fax it to the EPA Las Vegas Finance Center at 702-798-2423. In anticipation of the scheduled EPA financial system downtime, recipients should enroll in ASAP before August 1, 2011.
Please be advised that if your assistance agreement is in a “reimbursement” status that requires a pre-payment review by EPA, when using the ASAP system you must continue to follow the payment approval procedures specified in the terms of the agreement. Also, we provided this notice to you as the project manager of EPA grant(s). Please share this information with the appropriate financial management staff for your organization.
EPA will provide additional information concerning the financial system transition as necessary to update recipients on financial data processing during the system transition. Recipients also may obtain additional information about ASAP enrollment by contacting the EPA Las Vegas Finance Center at (702) 798-2485.
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Office of Grants and Debarment
1200 Pennsylvania Ave., NW
Mail Code 3903R
Washington, DC 20460